Communication networks permit computer-related devices, such as personal computers, servers, laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and other similar devices, to communicate with one another. Currently, common household appliances, such as refrigerators, microwaves, and the like, are being implemented with micro controllers and/or microcomputers that allow these appliances to communicate over a communication network, such as the Internet.
Sometimes, communications over these networks are governed by a packetization protocol and a corresponding packet exchange protocol that specify what the communication devices on the network must and must not do under different specific circumstances. These protocols are specified under the relevant standards, as applicable to the domains in which the communication devices operate.
Packetization and packet exchange protocols usually require that the communication devices involved in a communication process store and respond to packets in separate steps that require allocations of memory to hold and process one or more packets. A conventional technique used by a communication device includes receiving a packet, storing it in local memory, and processing it only after complete reception of the packet. This technique places a demand on the communication device to have a large enough local memory that can store the entire packet and any corresponding control information.
Some communication devices, such as mini-computers, micro-controllers, and microcomputers, lack sufficient resources to store one or more packets or perform necessary networking protocol procedures. To participate in communication over a packet communication network, these devices must often associate themselves as slave devices to one or more host computers that contain the resources to perform operations on their behalf. For example, the host computers may perform the networking protocol procedures on behalf of the slave devices, transmit information to other devices on behalf of the slave devices, and perform operations on the slave devices in response to requests by network devices with which the slave devices are communicating. Such arrangements can result in delays in the processing of the packets, lead to many practical difficulties, and increase the cost of connecting the devices to the communication network.
Therefore, there exists a need for systems and methods that allow devices having limited memory capacity to participate in network operations.